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There are a little less than three weeks left until the biggest event in cooling, ventilation and airconditioning. Under the same roof, in the Kolovare Hotel in Zadar on 19 - 21 April two conferences will be held: the 8th Klima-forum and the 26th Conference on Heating, Cooling and Airconditioning INTER-KLIMA. While the professional and scientific lecturers are going to be held on 20 and 21 April, at numerous exhibition spaces, that will be available for broader public from the afternoon of 19 April to the afternoon of 21 April, the leading domestic and international manufacturers of refrigeration and air conditioning devices, equipment and systems will present new solutions, products, services and achievements.

But that's not all. On the first day of the conferences, on 20 April, a new edition of EM Literature will be presented. It is about the book HLAĐENJE I KLIMATIZACIJA (i.e. REFRIGERATION AND AIRCONDITIONING), the life work of one of the doyens of refrigeration and airconditioning technology in Croatia and beyond, prof. dr. sc. Orest Fabris. The book provides the most important thermodynamic basics and explains the phenomena, processes and laws that appear in cooling and airconditioning technology. Special attention is given to practical and specific solutions, and corresponding equations, expressions and numerical data are given along with them. The book also includes the latest changes related to the protection of the ozone layer, rational use of energy and some completely new achievements and expected changes in the future. At the end, the book is supplemented with a large number of solved tasks and appendices in the form of tables, diagrams, etc. In a word - a work that should be owned by anyone who deals with cooling, ventilation and air conditioning in any way.

The first number of EGE Magazine this year was also an anniversary. Specifically, the first issue of the Magazine in this year came out of the printing house just a few days after exactly 30 years since the first issue of the Magazine has been published. It should be reminded: it was on 4 March 1993.

The new issue of the EGE Magazine is therefore thematically dedicated to this important anniversary, but this is not the only reason for the celebration this year: the 150. issue of the Magazine will be published in the fall. In addition to the anniversary, the Magazine also went through a certain design refreshment.

But this is not the only novelty related to the Magazine. Recently, the database of the articles published in the past 20 years of the Magazine (for technical reasons it was not possible for database to cover all 30 years) is again available on the Magazine webpage. In doing so, it is possible to search according to the words in the title, topics, authors, or by the type of text. Fast and easy.

Last year, gas consumption in Croatia was reduced by as much as 17,4% compared to 2021, which is the biggest drop in the past decade. At the same time, thanks to the liquefied natural gas terminal, Croatia has turned from a major gas importer into an exporter. Investments in the expansion of terminal capacity will therefore continue in the coming years, as the existing ones are leased until 2030. The price of gas for households and other protected categories will not be increased for some time, and the plan is to establish a gas exchange that should respond to an increasing number of problems.

These were some of the main highlights from the presentation related to the state of the gas market at the 22nd Plinarski forum (i.e. Forum on Gas), which gathered numerous participants from the gas industry and technology and all related fields.

As part of the Forum, a round table was held on the topic of the future of gas implementation. Thus, it was pointed out that gases should not be divided according to origin and that gas networks can and should be ready to receive decarbonized gases - hydrogen and biomethane. Namely, regardless of the direction and goals of the energy transition, i.e. energy decarbonization, one should take into account the importance of the existing gas infrastructure, in which a huge amount of money has been invested, and also ask oneself who will bear the costs of replacing natural gas with other energy sources in the end. At the same time, everyone dealing with biogas is troubled by the fact that they are not recognized for the huge increase in input costs, while the selling price of the electricity they produce is limited. This could ultimately jeopardize the further production of biogas. When it comes to carbon dioxide, which is also a gas, it was announced that a contract will soon be signed for its disposal in suitable geological formations in Slavonia. In any case, in gas technology and the gas industry, we need to prepare for the future already now.

The round anniversary of thirty years of publication of the EGE magazine, which has celebrared just these days, is not the only fresh 'jubilee' in the ENERGETIKA MARKETING company. Our dear colleague Zvjezdana Šušnić, head of our Data Centre, after a full 30 years of service in our company and a total of 40 years of service, is retiring. The continuously and carefully updated base of our subscribers and participants at conferences is her life's work and forms the very foundation of our successful business today and in the future.

Anyone who has ever bought a subscription to EGE magazine or one of our books and handbooks - and we had dozens of them - has met our Zvjezdana. Because every one of our published issues passed through her diligent hands.

Zvjezdana remembers very well the beginnings of our company, the days when work was done 'on foot', on devices that we have almost forgotten, typewriters and telefaxes. There was a lot of work, but there was no lack of good banter either. We will fondly remember Zvjezdana from the many 'team building' in nature, but also the fierce parties at our conferences, unforgettable gatherings all over Croatia - in Dubrovnik, Zadar, Rovinj, Umag...

We thank Zvjezdana for the dedicated work of all past decades, collegiality and cheerfulness that we will miss. At the same time, we would like to welcome her successor, new colleague Bojana Ivanković, also with extensive experience working with databases.

It was the year 93... when calamities came to our Croatia... (as the popular Croatian song would say). It was the time when the Croatian War of Independece was raging in full swing, but also the time of the first years of the young state and the new, democratic order. At the same time, it was the era when new social and economic relations began, the era of newly flourishing entrepreneurship.

At that time, one entrepreneurial project started, from which, among other things, a rich publishing business, the organization of numerous conferences and the portal www.energetika-net.com were later born. Namely, it was at that time that the EGE magazine was launched, the first issue of which was published exactly 30 years ago, on March 4, 1993, and was presented to professionals and the general public with an appropriate ceremony at the (then) Intercontinental Hotel in Zagreb.

Today, 30 years later, much has changed and much is different now (although, unfortunately, war is raging in Europe again). However, the EGE magazine is still there and five times a year brings reliable and accurate information from energy, economy, ecology and ethics (hence the name, i.e. the acronym in Croatian!) and all related professions and fields.

Geothermal energy has enormous potential in Croatia, and the energy potential of shallow layers of soil, underground and surface water should not be ignored either. These were the main highlights of this year's first Seminar on the Possibilities of Renewable Energy Sources Implementation named Energy from the Depths.

For example, the Croatian Hydrocarbons Agency (AZU) has designated 75 exploration areas and is currently conducting exploratory measurements of geothermal potential for use in district heating systems in Sisak, Velika Gorica, Osijek, Vinkovci, Zaprešić and Vukovar, after which two exploratory wells will be drilled. At the same time, the examples of cities such as Bjelovar show that, when there is will and desire, it is not difficult to start even very ambitious projects, all with the aim of becoming energy self-sufficient. In addition, AZU has recently announced a tender for concessionaires for six exploration areas for the power production from geothermal energy, with the first plants expected in 4 - 5 years. At the same time, the first Croatian geothermal power plant is unnecessarily burdened by a dispute over ownership, which, for now, has no end in sight. Finally, there is increasing interest in the use of geothermal water for heating greenhouses in agriculture. This should not be surprising, because the probability of finding (geo)thermal waters in Croatia is as high as 75%.

On the other hand, there are more and more people who decide to use ground-water and water-water heat pumps for heating, cooling and preparation of domestic hot water in the home, business premises and hotels, as well as in industry. Numerous completed projects, as well as those yet to be completed, show that everything is moving in the right direction.

The issue of the energy crisis is very complex. Namely, most people experience an energy crisis only when fuel prices skyrocket or when huge queues appear at gas stations. That has recently said dr. sc. David M. Smith, director of the Ruđer Bošković Institute (IRB) for the technical magazine EGE.
"However, the energy crisis has been going on for a long time and affects our lives more and more every day. The global energy crisis gained its greatest momentum after the pandemic of the disease COVID-19, when, along with the pandemic, a large part of the world faced shortages and increased prices on the oil markets, gas and electricity," he said. The crisis was caused, Smith added, among others, by various economic factors, problems with supply chains, financial speculation, labor shortages and climate change, and was later further aggravated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

You can read more about it in the EGE 5/2022 technical magazine issue, while this year's first and jubilee issue of the magazine, in which it celebrates 30 years of publication, is currently being prepared to go to the print.

The easiest way to subscribe to EGE magazine, which is published five times a year and follows the latest trends in energy, is online.

In the Specials of the www.energetika-net.com portal in February you can read:
• what Martina Tuschl, dipl. ing., director of the Research and Exploitation Sector at Croatian Hydrocarbons Agency says about the activities of the Agency and the potential of geothermal energy
• about the heroic action of liberation of Peruča Hydro Power Plant during the Croatian War of Independence
• what is it like to be a young and highly educated woman in power and energy industry?
• does the Ford Mustang, this time electric, steal the 'show' again?
• how will gas prices move this year?
• about whether the situation in energy and power industry is pink or not?

New edition of EM literature - book HLAĐENJE I KLIMATIZACIJA (REFRIGERATION AND AIR CONDITIONING) by prof. Orest Fabris, PhD is ready to go to the print. The presentation and promotion of the book is expected on 20 April 2023 in Zadar, at KLIMA-FORUM and INTER-KLIMA conferences.

It is a book (a handbook) intended for graduate and post-graduate students of engineering and similar faculties, but also for young engineers who are starting to deal with this issue practically. The book provides the most important thermodynamic basics and explains the phenomena, processes and laws that appear in cooling and air conditioning technology. Special attention is given to practical and specific solutions, and corresponding equations, expressions and numerical data are given along with them.

The crises that follow each other encourage new thinking about policies and activities that will provide answers and solutions not only for the present, but also for the future. Although it may not seem so at first glance, Croatian higher education institutions and numerous companies have adapted very well to such trends.

For example, around thirty members of the Smart city group of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce jointly develop and produce modern solutions and products for smart cities and green public infrastructure. Researchers and scientists from FER have shown interesting solutions for examining tall objects using unmanned aerial vehicles, joint work of humans and robots in warehouses and for greater participation of households in the energy systems of the future. That Croatian science can equally cooperate on leading world projects was also shown by the FSB, whose teams are participating in one of the most significant astronomical projects - the construction of the 'Vera Rubin' Observatory in Chile, which will reveal the secrets of the universe. In addition, two interesting domestic projects were presented: reforestation using drones and the development of an autonomous robot for working in corn fields.

These were just some of the highlights from this year's Bright Future conference, which was held on 26 January 2023 in Zagreb, and included the 4th conference on new technologies, robotization and automation in industry and construction HRVATSKA 4.0 and the 8th conference on energy efficient lighting , smart homes, buildings and cities.